Have you ever been so fixed on the solution to a problem that you can’t see any other way? You’ve looked at the problem, considered your options, done the research and you just don’t see any other way. That’s one way thinking. Healing can be like that.
Healing journeys come in as many different variations as there are people in the world. We pursue healing on many levels, in many ways. But sometimes we get stuck in one way thinking about our healing. We just can’t see any other way, so keep doing what we know to do whether it works or not.
John 5:1-9 tells the story of Jesus healing a man who had been sick for 38 years.
When Jesus saw him lying there, and knew that he already had been in that condition a long time, He said to him, “Do you want to be made well?” The sick man answered Him, “Sir, I have no man to put me into the pool when the water is stirred up; but while I am coming, another steps down before me.” John 5:6-7
The man only knew of this one way to get healing. He could not see any other way. Jesus asked if he wanted to be healed and the man said he’d been trying for years. Basically, today it would be like saying, I’ve gone to the doctors, seen the specialists, done all the tests, tried all the drugs, surgeries and procedures. I don’t know what else to do!
And then Jesus gave him another way.
Jesus said to him, “Rise, take up your bed and walk.” And immediately the man was made well, took up his bed, and walked. John 5:8-9
The man was healed in more than physical ways. He was set free from his old way of thinking that “this” is the only way to get well. God is so much bigger than we can fathom! We need to let God out of the box we’ve put him in; the box that says healing has to look or come by a certain way.
Romans 12:2 says “Do not be conformed to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.”
If you have been stuck in a thinking pattern that tells you healing can only happen in one certain way, then one thing you can do today to strengthen your faith is to allow God to break that one way thinking, to renew your mind and give you faith and hope to believe that He is capable of things we can’t even think of or imagine!
Think about this:
~ Consider any area of your thinking that is stuck, where you’ve lost hope or given up.
~ Consider Jesus’ question to the man, “Do you want to be made well?”
~ Have you put God in a box where your healing is concerned?
~ Are you willing to believe that healing could look different than you have been thinking?
~ Ask God to show you where your beliefs or thinking may be hindering healing and confess it.
~ Allow God to attend to your spirit and renew your mind by spending some time in silence. Invite God in, be aware of His presence and just listen. Do this for as long as you wish.
~ Thank God for meeting you where you are, for working all things out for His glory and your good. Thank Him regardless of whether you “feel” or “hear” anything specific from him. He is always at work and our gratitude in spite of our feelings demonstrates our trust and faith in Him.
~ Practice makes progress, so practice this often.
~ Know that you are loved. Let that be the truth that you walk in today.
Be blessed with whole health and full life.
Comments